“Unforgettable” Tutorial
Welcome to this jazz standard tutorial on the tune “Unforgettable”.
“Unforgettable” follows an ABAC form, so that means that we have 2 identical A sections, and the C Section is similar to the B Section but with some slight variations in the last 3 bars.
“Unforgettable” Introduction Chords
In addition to a full arrangement, we also cover the 4 bar introduction which is heard in the famous Nat King Cole recording, and many other famous recordings of this tune.
Harmonic Fills & Reharmonisation
“Unforgettable” is a tricky tune to play because there is a lot of space in the form both harmonically. Throughout the form, there are places where we have the same chord for 2 whole measures, and in one case, the same chord for 4 whole measures. Having so much space between the chords can make it challenging to arrange the tune.
However, this also gives us the opportunity to explore some common reharmonisations and harmonic fills that can be applied to many different tunes.
Melodic Fills & Ornamentation
In addition to this harmonic space, there are also sections where the melody is static for multiple bars. Again this can present challenges to the arranger as we need to find ways to fill that space with melodic fills, ornamentation, and other devices to create a full and complete sounding arrangement.
Sus Chords, Upper Structure Triads, & Passing Chords.
We’re going to apply a wide range of jazz theory in this lesson including; suspended harmony, upper structure triads, tritone substitution, and passing chords. For the majority of the tune we will apply a stride left hand style.
Related Lessons
Augmented chords and scales have become great tools for jazz piano improvisation allowing us to add interesting colours to basic harmonies.
We explore inner voice movement over major, minor, and dominant chords, and then we will apply this information to a well-known jazz standard.
We start the lesson by recapping the basic theory behind sus chords and then explore them in context of major and minor 251s
Practice Tips
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From listening to the various recordings of the tune, we can get lots of inspiration for melodic fills and ornamentation.
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Any fills that we transcribe can be applied to other tunes that we are playing.
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Listening is the ultimate source of inspiration.
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Ensure that you are spending the time to listen and absorb information directly from your favourite recordings.
Great lesson, I played bass on a gig to this song and the piano player was all over the place.